Doin' Dirt ~ Ziam

Chapter 16

When Liam woke up, the cell was locked down and the overhead lights were snuffed. With effort, he managed to read his wristwatch in the mirror-reflected light: eleven thirty. Zayn was probably still awake below him, immersed in a novel. It didn't matter, Zayn was probably still mad at Liam. He knew what he did was wrong, he shouldn't of been so rude. Zayn had been nothing but understanding and comforting to him. It didn't matter now, one way or another he was going to get destroyed.

He climbed down the ladder, as quietly as his prison-issued boots would allow him. He had sat down at the small table and quietly pulled out a cigarette, looking around the darkness for a match or a lighter to light it with, when he heard Zayn speak up. "Need a light?"

And that's all it really took for Liam. He now was positive that Zayn had been plotting something, or had some cruel trick in line for Liam. He knew that after what Liam said to him, and how rude he had been, there was no way that Zayn would be this calm. Maybe their deal was off. Maybe Zayn would become Liam's worse enemy.

A thousand and one thoughts ran through Liam's mind, that he didn't even find the decency to reply. He reached a attentive, reluctant hand out and snatched the packet of matches from the mans hand, muttering a small 'thank you,' as he lowered himself back to his seat, letting the silence overtake them again.

"If the guards catch you there after lights out, you'll be ordered straight back to your bunk." Zayn's voice came from the darkness. It wasn't dangerously low, or intimidating. But it was uneasily calm. Liam could remember the last time Zayn was mad at him he got the silent treatment. Right now, that's all that Liam wanted. He wanted to be ignored. He wanted Zayn to blank him out; that way he knew that offering a cigarette would make it better. But right now, he had no idea what he was plotting.

"I've spent too much time in there already." Liam replied sheepishly as he looked over to the other man, offering him a small smile. His face was illuminated by the match that lit his cigarette. On the other hand, Zayn was still laying in the darkness, so he could be flipping Liam off and he wouldn't have a clue.

But, his theories were proven false when he heard Zayn get up and sit oppise Liam, his smooth chest fully exposed. Liam was the first one to break the silence this time, shakily holding his well-earned packrt of cigarettes to Zayn. "Fancy a smoke."

As if Zayn was just waiting for the request, he instantly answered. "Oh, god. Yes." He grinned, reaching his hand out to take one, as Liam slid the packet of matches back to him. Liam watched as Zayn took a grateful drag. "You never asked what I'm in for." He stated calmly as he watched the smoke until it twisted into the darkness and out of sight. "I guess someone else has already told you?"

"It was all over the news when it happened. You're in here for double murder... Your father?"

Zayn nodded. "If you kill your father, they call it patricide. Your mother? Matricide. Do them both in one night, send your parents to the next world, there's no word grand enough for it. Which is funny." Zayn chuckled, "because in the history of the whole human race, I can't be the only sorry bastard who's done it."

Liam stayed silent as he listened to Zayn's story, his face staying emotionless as he tried to comprehend what exactly it was that Zayn was trying to get acorss. He watched as Zayn brought a boney finger up and jabbed it into Liam's shoulder. "This is the part where you ask me why I did it."

Liam was too caught up to spare a second, he was so eager to know now. "Why did you do it?" He almost cried.

"I was the oldest Malik. And the only boy." Zayn's gaze slid down to the table, breaking eye contact from Liam. "My sister was six years younger than me. Only fourteen." He sighed. "I loved all my family, you know how it goes. But Waliyha was my favourite. When she was born I used to hold her on my lap and rock her on my knee until she fell asleep. She was a wonderful little sister. One day, in the summer, she came to me crying. She told me she was pregnant. She wouldn't give me his name. I said he would marry her or go to his grave, no negotiations. That was the first time she ever refused me. We were always so close. I didn't know what to do. I bellowed and threatened but all she did was cry."

Liam didn't know what to say. Zayn had paused so he assmed there could of been something he would of said to comfort the lad, but before he had a chance to open his mouth, he got cut off again."Anyway, next week she comes up to me and tells me it's all over. She got rid of the baby! There was a mad old bat in the village, used to perform illegal abortions. But I never though that Waliyha would get one. She was very much pro-life. I still think she was made to do it. She was only young but she would of loved something to take care of, instead of being the one that was always cared for. But he had forced her into letting that old bag rake into her."

Liam was a little taken back by the venom in Zayn's voice. It was filled with pure hatred; nothing Liam had heard ever before. It took him a while to catch on, but realization hit his face like a brick. "Your father?" His voice came out small and timid, fearing Zayn's reaction.

"Oh yes," his face twisted into a rather terrifying smirk. "Keeping it all in the family, don't you know?" He took another puff of his cigarette as he looked back down to the table, his fingers running over a few of the cracks in the old wood.

"And me, such a damned fool, I never even guessed. We were all just kids. And scared shitless of the old man. He wouldn't hesitate to cuff us. But I never knew he liked to put his fingers up girls skirts. And mum knew. God help us, she knew. When Waliyha told me, he'd gone the furthest with her, he had taken her to bed, I... Well, y'know how they say an angry man sees red?" He paused for a moment. His eyes were wide and distant, like he was reliving the memories in his head. "'It's true. The world went Crimson. Maybe it was the devil taking over me. I don't know."

A faint smile played on his lips, but it wasn't the type of smile you would expect to see from someone who was taling about such dark topics. Maybe this is what he had done when he first got sent down, maybe this was what got him locked away for so long.

"I smoked and paced the back garden while Mum cooked supper. The second dad came home - the second he entered through the door - I was on to him. Don't remember what I did, don't remember what I said. I just broke his neck with my bare hands."

Liam tried to imagine such a thing. But he had never had any fatherly figure in his life and the thought of laying a finger on his mum made his heart wrench. "Tell me everything." Liam pressed on, his eyes locking with Zayn's. "I can guess. But tell me." He smiled a little.

Zayn smiled again. But this time it touched his eyes, crinkling the skin around them and something in Liam's torso turned over. The man was handsome. Not just his looks, it was something behind them eyes.

"You see, Payne." Zayn grinned as he poked around with some old ash on the table. "There's two things that run in my family in my mothers side. A kind heart and madness." He continued. "My cousins are the maddest, always jabbering away to the saints, pure crazy. As for my mum, she had a kind heart- she ran a charity for sick children. She was also mad. She was mad for my dad. He was meat and drink to her - the sun and moon in one suitcase. She loved him more than me and all my family put together." He paused for a moment, his eyes so lost in thought Liam could almost see the memories flashing before him.

"So, when I took him by the throat, she came at me. With an iron hammer. A hammer." With a light shake of his head, he looked up to Liam. "Don't remember taking it from her. Or knocking her down. It must of been one hell of a blow, because," he paused to take a long drag of the burning butt between his fingers. "Because she died a couple of hours after they arrested me."

"Did you flee?" Liam's voice came out timid and quiet. He wondered what he would of done in Zayn's place. He wouldn't dream of lifting a finger to his mum. She was so sweet and gentle. She was the only thing he had left, really. She would remain faithful to her son and wait as long as her health held out.

"Flee? No. I didn't think of it at the time - charged with double murder. Waliyha offered to testify for me, but it was pointless. She tried, bless her. And the crazy hag down the road got arrested."

Of course, the tears which were brimming over the hazel eyes didn't go unnoticed. The poor lad was staring at the wood of the old table, his eyes full of frightful memories and things that he could never unsee. "I wanted to protect her, Liam." He breathed out, a small crack breaking mid sentence. "But all I did was shame her and break the family."

Before Liam had a chance to even comprehend what Zayn had just told him, he stood up. "Goodnight."

//

I'm sorry this took so long. My sister took the laptop to uni and I don't like updating on my phone. But hopefully the reasonable length will make up for ittttt.x

Vote comment fan